Thill-coupling.



No. 643,209. Patented Feh. l3, l1900. J. F. TAIT.

THILL COUPLINGL (Application filed June 26, 1899.)

(No Model.)

PATENT JAMES F. TAIT, OF EVANSTON, ILLINOIS.

THILL-COUPLING.

$PEGIIEICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 643,209, datedFebruary 13, 1900.

Application filed June 26, 1899. Serial No. 721,870. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES F. TAIT, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of Evanston, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, haveinventedcertain new and useful Improvements in 'lhill-Couplings, ofwhich the following is a specification, and which are illustrated in'theaccompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

The objects of this invention are to provide cheap, simple, andefficient means for coupling thills to vehicles, and to provide meansfor aecomplishin g this purpose which shall be capable of application tovehicles of usual form of construction without alteration, so thatpersons not skilled mechanics may apply them. These objects areaccomplished by the mechanism hereinafter fully described and which areillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is aperspective of the device as applied to a vehicle; and Fig. 2 is avertical section across the axle of the vehicle and centrally throughits draft'cli p, some of the parts being shown in elevation.

I show at 10 a section of the front axle of the-Vehicle, and at 11 thethill-iron or eye. The draft-clip 12 is of ordinary construction and issecured to the axle 10 in the usual manner and has a pair offorwardly-projecting draft eye-lugs 13 14, between which the thill-eye11 is pivotally secured by means of the pin 15. The parts thus farmentioned are without novelty, except that the pivot-pin 15 instead ofbeing provided with the usual retaining-nut is secured in place by themechanism which forms the subject of this application. In place of theusual head for the pivot-pin 15 there is provided a bracket-arm 16,fixed to the pin and projecting backwardly, so as to have bearingagainst the front face of the axle 10, and thence extending downwardly,as shown. A bar 17 preferably forming an integral part of thebracket-arm 16, is so disposed as to lie across the tops of thedraft-lugs 13 14, and its outer end is preferably slightly curvedupwardly, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1. A second bracket-arm 18 isprovided with an aperture near one end to receive the outer end of thebar 17, and when adjusted thereto extends downwardly as a companion tothe arm 16. The rock-shaft 19 is journaled in the lower ends of the arms16 and 18 and intermediate of its bearings therein is bowed in themanner shown, forming of it a crank-arm. To the bow of the shaft 19there is pivotally attached a bowed leaf-spring 20, which is adapted toproject forwardly and then return, so that its free end, which isslightly curved upwardly, as shown at 21, will hook under and behind thethill'eye 11. The shaft 19 is provided with a crank-arm 22 by which itmay be controlled and which is adapted to contact with the front face ofthe axle 10 when the parts are assembled. The angular relation of thiscrank-arm with the bowed portion of the shaft 19 is such that when thecrank-arm rests against the axle the bow of the shaft is back of thepoint of bearing of the free end 21 of the spring 20 against thethill-eye, so that the expansion of the spring tends to throw the bow ofthe shaft backwardly, this tendency, however,.being resisted by thecrank-arm 22 and axle 10.

In order to attach the thill-eye to the draftlugs,it is placed betweenthem, and the pin 15 is then inserted through the several eyes, the bar17 passing above the lugs 13 14. The arm 18 is now hooked over the endof the bar 17, the crank-arm 22 having been thrown forwardly to permitof this engagement. The crank-arm is now thrown backwardly, therebyraising the bowed portion of the shaft 19 and compressing the. springuntil its lower end passes the bearing-point of its upper end, when bythe action of the spring the crankarm is thrown forcibly against theaxle and the coupling is completed. It will be seen that it will beimpossible for the crank-arm to be accidentally thrown forward, as thetension of the spring 20 must be overcome by this movement.

The curved form of the end of the bar 17, together with the tension ofthe spring 20, prevents the disengagement from the bar of thebracket-arm 18, and hence also prevents the longitudinal movement of thebar and the pin 15, so that there is no possibility of the pivot-pinWorking out.

Inasmuch as the draft-clip shown, as well as the thill-iron, is ofcommon construction, it is obvious that it does not require the servicesof a blacksmith or carriage-maker in order to apply the device, and thatany person may readily attach and detach the thills, and hence mayeasily and quickly exchange thills for a pole in vehicles adapted forthe use of either. Itis also apparent that the action of the springentirely prevents the rattling of the parts, so that the device is notonly a simple and efficient coupling, but a perfect antirattler.

The device can be considerably modified in form without departing fromthe scope of the invention, and I do not desire to be limited to theexact construction shown. The essential features are that the pivot-pinis provided with a bracket frame, a portion of which engages the pin toprevent its retraction from the socket within which it is inserted,within which is journaled a crankshaft provided with means for limitingits movement, a spring being so disposed as to react between thecrank-shaft and a fixed portion, so as to prevent the disengagement ofthe parts.

I claim as my invention 1. In a thill-coupling, in combination, apivot-pin, a bracket secured to the pivot-pin, a crankshaft journaled inthe bracket, a

- spring for reacting between the crank of the shaft and a fixed part,and means for limiting the movement of the shaft.

2. In a thill-coupling, in combination, a

pivot-pin, a bracket-arm fixed to one end of the pin, a bar projectingfrom the bracketarm adjacent to and parallel with the pivotpin, an armadapted to engage the outer end of the bar, a rock-shaft journaled inthe arm and the bracket remote from their engagement with the bar andbeing bowed intermediate of its bearings, an expanding spring adapted toreact between the bowed portion of the rock-shaft and the pivot-pin, andastoparm to limit the movement of the shaft.

3. In a thill coupling, in combination, a pivot-pin, a bracket-arm fixedto one end of the pin, a bar projecting from the bracketarm adjacent toand parallel with the pivotpin, an arm adapted to engage the outer endof the bar, a rock-shaft journaled in the arm and the'bracket remotefrom their engagement with the bar and being bowed intermediate of itsbearings, a bowed leaf-spring pivotally attached to the bowed portion ofthe rock-shaft, its free end being adapted for engagement with athill-eye when the pivot-pin is passed through the same, and a crank-armfixed to the shaft and adapted to contact with a fixed part to limit itsmovement.

' JAMES F. TAIT.

Witnesses:

J AS. B. TAIT, A. D. TAIT.

